SOCCER; Extra Time Right Time As France Stuns Italy

With only 30 seconds to play, Italy was celebrating its first European title in 32 years.

The party began a little too early.

Sylvain Wiltord shocked Italy by tying the game three and a half minutes into injury time, and David Trezeguet scored the winner 13 minutes into overtime to give France, the 1998 World Cup champion, a 2-1 victory today in the European Championship final.

''Everybody thought we were dead,'' Thierry Henry said. ''With the French team, it is never over. I was pretty annoyed the Italians were already thinking of victory. They were clapping hands and high-fiving. It was bothering me so, I was really happy when the ball went in.''

The victory gave France its first European title since 1984 and the first sweep of the two most prestigious titles in soccer. It set off a huge celebration in Paris, where a crowd estimated at 400,000, some waving French flags, turned out on the Champs-Elysees.

''I think a thing like this you won't forget for a lifetime,'' defender Alessandro Nesta said. ''Thirty seconds from the end, and it all goes up in air.''

Many of the Italians dropped to the ground in dismay and disbelief.

''When you feel victory is in your hands and it slips away, it takes a lot out of your spirit,'' Coach Dino Zoff of Italy said. ''But it was a great effort. I'm really sorry, but this is soccer.''

Italy went ahead in the 56th minute when Gianluca Pessotto curled a low cross into the penalty area, and Marco Delvecchio stabbed it into the upper corner of the net. Delvecchio, playing in only his fifth international game, redirected the ball with the inside of his left foot, and goalkeeper Fabien Barthez had no chance.

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Italy could have opened up a bigger lead, but Alessandro Del Piero missed two good scoring chances in the second half.

When all seemed lost for the French, Wiltord finally found a hole in the Italian defense, beating goalkeeper Francesco Toldo with a low, angled shot as injury time was coming to an end.

It followed a length-of-the-field kick by Barthez that defender Fabio Cannivaro tried to clear, only to have the ball go straight to the unmarked Wiltford.

The French pushed ever harder in overtime, and Robert Pires broke on the left and passed low into the path of Trezeguet, who volleyed high into the net from 10 yards out.

''It is the willpower of the team that did it,'' Coach Roger Lemerre of France said. ''The team wanted this trophy since the day it won the World Cup. We said that, if there was a second left, we had to go all out for it. The miracle happened and we caused it.''

Both Wiltord and Trezeguet started the game on the bench, with Wiltord entering in the 58th minute for Christophe Dugarry and Trezeguet in the 76th for Youri Djorkaeff.